Also a drug addict - SoberRecovery : Alcoholism Drug Addiction Help and Information

jen32 · 08-04-2004, 06:30 PM

Hi my name is Jennifer and I have 1 year clean and sober yesterdy. I have been attending meetings in my area but mostly what is available are A/A meeting. I have been saying that I am an alcoholic and last night at the meeting a lady told me that it was a closed meeting of A/A and the discussion should pretain to alcoholism. I was kind of upset because most of my experience has been with substance abuse and in a way kind of felt unwelcome. We have only one N/A meeting available per week so I am here looking for some support. I have decided that when I do go to A/A meetings that I will also say that I am an addict. What do you think?

bikewench · 08-04-2004, 06:51 PM

Hey Jen...

A closed meeting.. and restricted sharing..

Yeah.. I've been hit with that as well... and it hurts...

Now.. I can see the importance of keeping meetings on topic... and I do try to give closed meetings a pass unless I'm in crisis... but any time I've gone to a surrogate meeting to keep an abstinance... and I'm asked to qualify or share... I always state my addictions... and that I'm simply there as a friend of Bill...

I've been passed on then quite a few times... and that's okay... cause I'm mostly there to hear the experience, strength and hope of the program.

Just take what helps you .... and do whatever it takes to keep you clean...

Blessings on your year Jen...

Chy · 08-07-2004, 12:58 PM

Belated welcome Jen, you'll find a great deal of support here!

wishIsedNO · 08-07-2004, 06:40 PM

Hey Jen i know how you feel....I havent been able to get into NA meetings never mind AA...But the problem is Im on methadone...And they see methadone just like any other drug...So to them im still using...And that hurts to me because yea some people who get on methadone abuse it and keep on using other drugs..But then theres also the few that take methadone like me and dont abuse it...Stay off of heroin..And begin to live normal lives thanx to the help of meth...But people only see the bad not the good and because of that i feel like im not welcomed..Although like my counnselor says no one knows nuthing unless you open your mouth, but my clinic since we have groups theres also and i have found nice friends there is a big part of my recovery life...And to not be able to share about it bugs me..When i used my life was filled with lies now im clean i dont wanna have to lie no more so i dont go to meeting unless its an emergency and its on a weekend..Cause thank god my clinic i go to is open all day during the week...And we have groups..And i see a counselor whenever i need too...
Although your problem is different...But i know how you feel when you wanna talk about your problems and what really bugs you and feel like you aint welcomed to do so...And to me that shouldnt be..Especially when alcohol is just as much a drugs as drugs are...But in my opinion and what ive dealt with my dad..Alkies believe there seperate from drug addicts...Because what they use is legal...That drug addicts are criminals and disgusting...But hey my dads an alkie and hes just as ugly and miserable as i was when i used...All i can say is go with your heart..If it will make you feel better to come out and tell them your an addict then do so....Since your from a small town and you only got one NA meeting they should understand that you need to talk more then once a week...If they let something that small bug them then they're the one needs more meetings...Jackie

Ann25 · 08-07-2004, 07:25 PM

Welcome Jen!!!!!!!!

Keep coming!!!!!!
Ann

KelKel · 08-07-2004, 07:42 PM

Wow that is a tough one...
I remember one of my first AA meetings that I attended while in a 28-day rehab. (I just want to throw in here that I did not have a choice in the matter if... I was going to be able to attend this particular facility.)
Most other rehab facilities are structured in the same fashion.
Anywho...
I had quickly bonded with a small group of people
who were also fighting for their lives.
When you get a bunch of people together
who do not know how to tread water...
(you know who don't have the best coping skills...

)
and you throw them all into some GIANT wild wave pool with little tiny "almost useless" life preserver's and say
"okay real quick get your **** together and figure out with these facts that we are going to present you whether you want to live or die...?

Anywho Again...
My first meeting was like like some Texas revival of folks who used to hang out everday, all day partying in Luckenbach... I love that place (no joke)
I sooo heard what I needed to hear, I met my first temporary sponser...you oughta see this ol'timer's introduction card...

So i was on what they like to call the pink cloud of recovery...
Next meeting cool...still feeling really fragile.
Next meeting...I was so put off that I seriously was thinking about giving up on AA period.
An addiction is an addiction, it simply does not matter what it is that you are addicted to...it ALL really sucks.
My girlfriend (who is now on diaylisis)
stated that she was AA/NA and a few old timers started acting like real old coot's, basically made a scene!...

I was crushed being so new into my sobriety and suddenly my temporary and frail cacoon of survival was whisked away by a little tiny civil rights activist with solar powered wings.
I don't even need a drink to get all riled up about crap like that.
I study Buddhism and my approach is a little more all encompassing...
hey doesn't it show?
it's not a competition..a race..
It is about compassion and love, firstly for thyself.
So there is a happy ending here, I am not that much of a downer..
I was about to give it all up and say "Calgon take me away" ya right!
and someone suggested that i attend the thurs AA Meeting. Well I knew that I still needed to get a meeting in that day (or I would be reprimanded).
It was a meeting held by elders of a local Native American Tribe. They used a language and ceremonies that instantly connected me to my Higher Power.
I then had a much healthier attitude about my recovery, since I was not feeling like somehow (no matter how faintly) being religiously persecuted for my somewhat pagan beliefs.

Basically once again..
those darn Grandfathers stepped in and saved my butt.
And they told me that AA is an excellent tool to help us to learn
this new and better way of life.

Nomaste'

By the way we have regularly scheduled meetings here at SR.

Omega · 08-07-2004, 08:51 PM

The way I see it... I am an addict... and an alcoholic... and a bunch of other "ics" and "lics". And if there is recovery in the room... I will say I am an elephant... if that is what it takes.
This is a simple program. When we complicate it and disect it... we suffer. Today... I feel no compulsion to prove my point or pursuede others to see my side.
If the meeting is closed and the meeting is AA... then I should keep my statements related to alcohol. There are rules... and I am no exception to them... just like everyone else.

KelKel · 08-08-2004, 01:04 PM

You certainly have a valid point Omega...

jen32 · 08-12-2004, 12:11 PM

Thank You all so much for your input. I agree there are rules and I am no exception. Thanks!

MootPoint · 08-12-2004, 05:03 PM

Belated welcome, Jen.

I usually go to AA, sometimes to NA.

That bites re so little NA in your area.

There are alot of ppl in my AA who identify themselves as addicts. Straight out addicts. Ang they share on what they feel about addiction, how addiction affected them, etc, without going into what drug they used.

I'm an alcoholic/addict. When I chair at AA meetings, I talk about alcohol and refer to the other stuff (crack, pain pills, etc) as "other substances' and relate it to how it affected, or was affected by, alcohol.

I have no problems with the groups I go to.

Now we have a closed group...... I don't go to it. It makes me very uncomfortable. So I go to another one in the area.

Cangel · 08-13-2004, 12:07 PM

I am so glad that AH is welcomed into his AA meetings. He has established a very good relationship with them. I don't really believe there are no NA meetings around here.

There are no al-anon, naranon meetings either.

I'mtheExWife · 08-13-2004, 01:06 PM

I dont know if you have checked the meeting locator on the NA site, but here is the link anyway.
http://portaltools.na.org/portaltools/MeetingLoc/

good luck,
Jacki

deathbyher · 10-30-2008, 10:27 AM

Hey i love N.A meeting but my boyfriend is an alcaholic as well as a drug atticted. so when i go with him to a.a i always say im an atticted.people look at me like im an alian but its cool.a drug is a drug an if people cant exept us then thats them not us. drugs are not social excepted but alchol is. thats how i look it at so i dont get anger.just see where there coming from.<3

bvaljalo · 10-30-2008, 10:40 AM

I'm primarily a drug addict, but I've certainly abused alcohol in my day as well. Not a textbook alcoholic by any stretch, but nevertheless, I identify myself as an addict/alcoholic when I go to AA, which is the fellowship I attend far more regularly. I simply use the euphemism 'getting loaded' to refer to my use of anything (if I even need to), and I've never gotten so much as a sideways look at any meeting I've ever been to, and I've been to a lot of them, in a lot of different places.

Look, it's this simple: If you're told there's a rule to confine your shares to discussion of alcohol, then just don't mention drugs by name, and nobody is going to say 'boo' to you about 'breaking the rules'. And as for the methadone thing ... I would go to meetings anyway, even on methadone. You're there to learn how to live a clean/sober life, not necessarily to win everyone's 'approval'. I've never heard of a group that would kick someone out (or not allow them in) as long as they're not disruptive or disrespectful.

If you need a meeting, and there is only a closed meeting available, then just GO, and don't talk about drugs specifically, and you should be fine by everyone there ... at least, that's been my experience.

I'll tell you what, though, when you go to AA in more urban areas ... they are WAY more accepting of ANYone showing up who's looking for recovery from whatever their problem is, at least in my experience. I've been to very few AA meetings where it was explicitly stated that people were not to talk about anything but alcohol problems, and I've certainly never heard anyone get 'cut off' or anythign like that just cause they mentioned 'other substances' in a share.

I kinda trip out when I hear stories like this, cause in the Bay Area, in California, I've always felt like ANYone who wanted recovery was welcome at AA meetings.

justanothrdrunk · 10-30-2008, 10:58 AM

Alcohol was my main thing, but I'm an addict too.

The sentiment about AA being strictly about alcohol is largely regional I've found. In my area, no one in AA has voiced a concern about sharing of drug abuse or identifying as an addict in AA meetings where I've attended.

There have been discussions here in the alcohol forums about this too. Some folks are more strict about the singleness of purpose of AA. And I can see their point.

The one thing that qualifies you for AA is your desire to stop drinking. If you have that desire, you're in. Some others at meetings may need to be reminded of that. As far as sharing, to me, that's up to the group concious and not an individual. If I were approached by only a handful of folks, I would encourage to bring their concerns up at the next group concious or business meeting.

It is, in my opinion, valid for an AA group concious to decide that sharing be limited to alcohol abuse. And if that's the way a meeting goes, I would be respectful of that.

I also know folks who are more on the addict side who still share their drug experience, but choose their words a little more carefully. Instead of referring to drugs specifically they say, "when I 'pick-up'" or something more generic.

kj3880 · 10-30-2008, 11:18 AM

You know, I would just say I'm an alcoholic" if I'm at AA. I never abused the drug alcohol, but the AA definition is that anyone who has a desire to quit drinking is a member. And you know that in NA, we only consider ourselves as clean if we are not using and that includes alcohol for us. So I have the desire to stay clean from alcohol, which makes me legitimate for AA membership, at least in my mind.

As for the methadone issue, I don't think I would share in NA about that. I didn't share about suboxone use, didn't need the negativity. I look at it this way: If you are taking it exactly as prescribed, it isn't drug abuse. Many, many people don't agree with me on the above issues, but I don't care. I have to do what I need to do to stay clean. The only clean time I have to count is my own. And so far, at 7 months, I have a much better life and I'm sane and productive. I'm happy, joyous and free, most of the time.
KJ

windysan · 10-30-2008, 11:19 AM

When I went to AA meetings the alcoholics were a small minority. LOL

ccgirl2 · 10-30-2008, 12:56 PM

You know, I go to AA too, and one day I just broke down and fessed up that I was an addict. An old timer said it didn't matter what the substance was we were addicted to, just that were were all trying to get better.

I'm sorry your group isn't more accepting. Maybe you could call AA in your general area and see if there's any other meetings for NA or open AA meetings within a reasonable distance.

Rob B · 10-30-2008, 07:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by windysan

When I went to AA meetings the alcoholics were a small minority. LOL

And that is a crying shame, AA is for alcoholics, hence the name. Over the last 30 years we have let everyone with an issue come to our groups and spew opinions about recovery, most of them can't be found in our basic text which carries the AA message of recovery. Small wonder our success rates now hover at a whopping 8%.

I am a huge believer in singleness of purpose, and the traditions, this position makes me real unpopular, I could care less. I know this post will rile some of you up, that's fine, we fear what we don't know, and what we don't know we don't like. Study up on what the AA literature has to say about singleness of purpose and non alcoholic drug addicts in meetings.

Thanks2HP · 10-31-2008, 12:15 AM

I got started in AA 14 years ago. Two years ago I started dating a woman who has the same amount of recovery in NA. I started attending NA meetings and she attended several AA meetings. She identifies as an addict when she goes to a meeting with me. I identified myself as an alcoholic when I went to her home group because I knew it would be ok to do so. Last month I started identifying myself as an addict at that and other NA meetings. I believe that an alcoholic and an addict are pretty much the same. AA focuses on the substance of alcohol while NA does not focus on any one substance. Alcohol is a drug - period.

At the meetings I've attended, people in both AA and NA were tolerant of people not identifying as what the majority of the room identified as. I've heard people identify as "an alcoholic and an addict" too.

I don't really care what people identify themselves as. I'm glad to see them at a meeting trying to stay clean, just like I am.

A lot of the shares in AA mention drugs because that was part of their story. I haven't heard one complaint about it yet but I'm sure there might be an oldtimer or two that wouldn't get a warm & fuzzy if they heard drugs mentioned in an AA meeting.

I'd like to think that the people in both programs would focus on the solution and recovery rather than what a person identifies as. "Hi, my name is Orkgon, I am an alien and I want to stay clean"... would be good enough for me!

Please remember that the folks who have issues are fallible humans just like the rest of us. They may be forgetting the 'open-mindedness' aspect of recovery.

I hope you learn to feel comfortable and get recovery no matter what meeting you go to.

sunflower1776 · 10-31-2008, 01:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kj3880

As for the methadone issue, I don't think I would share in NA about that. I didn't share about suboxone use, didn't need the negativity. I look at it this way: If you are taking it exactly as prescribed, it isn't drug abuse. Many, many people don't agree with me on the above issues, but I don't care. I have to do what I need to do to stay clean. The only clean time I have to count is my own. And so far, at 7 months, I have a much better life and I'm sane and productive. I'm happy, joyous and free, most of the time.
KJ

Ive heard that too about NA--not mentioning the subs or meth use. I guess I can kind of understand the rationale some people have for that way of thinking, but I believe if we are using those as a way of help, then we should be able to talk about it.

Just a question for everyone--there are drugs like antabuse and another one that starts with a "v" (can't remember the name) that are for alcoholics--does the same hold true in AA meetings--if you're using something to help you stay sober do you not mention it?

sunflower1776 · 10-31-2008, 01:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rob B

And that is a crying shame, AA is for alcoholics, hence the name. Over the last 30 years we have let everyone with an issue come to our groups and spew opinions about recovery, most of them can't be found in our basic text which carries the AA message of recovery. Small wonder our success rates now hover at a whopping 8%.

I am a huge believer in singleness of purpose, and the traditions, this position makes me real unpopular, I could care less. I know this post will rile some of you up, that's fine, we fear what we don't know, and what we don't know we don't like. Study up on what the AA literature has to say about singleness of purpose and non alcoholic drug addicts in meetings.

I understand what you are saying--I do not attend meetings because I have been to a few and they are just not for me. However, my question is why are there so few NA groups? Where I live there is maybe 1 NA meeting for every 10-15 AA meetings? If I did go to meetings and needed one during the day, the only option I would have is an AA meeting because all NA meetings are at night here. What should someone in that situation do? Not go to a meeting because they couldn't talk openly at an AA meeting or go to an AA meeting and just not talk? I'm just curious as there really is a lack of 'help' for drug addicts who don't have problems with alcohol.

NeedingHelp7 · 10-31-2008, 08:17 AM

Quote:

But the problem is Im on methadone...And they see methadone just like any other drug...So to them im still using...

For years my AH has been going to NA. Currently he is using percocet and xanax. If hes using more, drug tests will reveal that soon. But..He tries to fool others, and myself, saying it's okay for him to be on such nasty drugs. What would NA people think?

Freedom1990 · 10-31-2008, 08:34 AM

We don't have NA in our small town, and I do qualify for both fellowships.

Our AA group is very accepting of addicts and alcoholics.

However, we do try to remain solution focused.

I introduce myself as an alcoholic out of respect for AA, but everyone there is aware I am dually addicted as are several others.

Occasionally we will share snippets of our past, and most have also abused drugs.

It's a very accepting group, and I am grateful for that.

08-04-2004, 06:30 PM	#1 (permalink)
jen32 Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: Concordia, Kansas Posts: 14	Also a drug addict Hi my name is Jennifer and I have 1 year clean and sober yesterdy. I have been attending meetings in my area but mostly what is available are A/A meeting. I have been saying that I am an alcoholic and last night at the meeting a lady told me that it was a closed meeting of A/A and the discussion should pretain to alcoholism. I was kind of upset because most of my experience has been with substance abuse and in a way kind of felt unwelcome. We have only one N/A meeting available per week so I am here looking for some support. I have decided that when I do go to A/A meetings that I will also say that I am an addict. What do you think?

08-07-2004, 07:25 PM	#5 (permalink)
Ann25 Still hangin` on... Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: MA Posts: 336	Welcome Jen!!!!!!!! Keep coming!!!!!! Ann __________________ "Our greastest glory consists not in ever falling, but rising everytime we fall." -Confucius

08-07-2004, 07:42 PM	#6 (permalink)
KelKel Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: The Mohave Desert Posts: 2,313	Wow that is a tough one... I remember one of my first AA meetings that I attended while in a 28-day rehab. (I just want to throw in here that I did not have a choice in the matter if... I was going to be able to attend this particular facility.) Most other rehab facilities are structured in the same fashion. Anywho... I had quickly bonded with a small group of people who were also fighting for their lives. When you get a bunch of people together who do not know how to tread water... (you know who don't have the best coping skills... ) and you throw them all into some GIANT wild wave pool with little tiny "almost useless" life preserver's and say "okay real quick get your **** together and figure out with these facts that we are going to present you whether you want to live or die...? Anywho Again... My first meeting was like like some Texas revival of folks who used to hang out everday, all day partying in Luckenbach... I love that place (no joke) I sooo heard what I needed to hear, I met my first temporary sponser...you oughta see this ol'timer's introduction card... So i was on what they like to call the pink cloud of recovery... Next meeting cool...still feeling really fragile. Next meeting...I was so put off that I seriously was thinking about giving up on AA period. An addiction is an addiction, it simply does not matter what it is that you are addicted to...it ALL really sucks. My girlfriend (who is now on diaylisis) stated that she was AA/NA and a few old timers started acting like real old coot's, basically made a scene!... I was crushed being so new into my sobriety and suddenly my temporary and frail cacoon of survival was whisked away by a little tiny civil rights activist with solar powered wings. I don't even need a drink to get all riled up about crap like that. I study Buddhism and my approach is a little more all encompassing... hey doesn't it show? it's not a competition..a race.. It is about compassion and love, firstly for thyself. So there is a happy ending here, I am not that much of a downer.. I was about to give it all up and say "Calgon take me away" ya right! and someone suggested that i attend the thurs AA Meeting. Well I knew that I still needed to get a meeting in that day (or I would be reprimanded). It was a meeting held by elders of a local Native American Tribe. They used a language and ceremonies that instantly connected me to my Higher Power. I then had a much healthier attitude about my recovery, since I was not feeling like somehow (no matter how faintly) being religiously persecuted for my somewhat pagan beliefs. Basically once again.. those darn Grandfathers stepped in and saved my butt. And they told me that AA is an excellent tool to help us to learn this new and better way of life. Nomaste' By the way we have regularly scheduled meetings here at SR. Last edited by KelKel; 08-08-2004 at 01:02 PM.

08-12-2004, 05:03 PM	#10 (permalink)
MootPoint we're all mad here! Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: a padded room with bars Posts: 1,687	Belated welcome, Jen. I usually go to AA, sometimes to NA. That bites re so little NA in your area. There are alot of ppl in my AA who identify themselves as addicts. Straight out addicts. Ang they share on what they feel about addiction, how addiction affected them, etc, without going into what drug they used. I'm an alcoholic/addict. When I chair at AA meetings, I talk about alcohol and refer to the other stuff (crack, pain pills, etc) as "other substances' and relate it to how it affected, or was affected by, alcohol. I have no problems with the groups I go to. Now we have a closed group...... I don't go to it. It makes me very uncomfortable. So I go to another one in the area. __________________ The duke had a mind that ticked like a clock and, like a clock, it regularly went cuckoo. ---------Terry Pratchett

08-13-2004, 01:06 PM	#12 (permalink)
I'mtheExWife Paused Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: The Jersey Shore Posts: 3	link to meeting locater I dont know if you have checked the meeting locator on the NA site, but here is the link anyway. http://portaltools.na.org/portaltools/MeetingLoc/ good luck, Jacki

08-04-2004, 06:51 PM	#2 (permalink)
bikewench Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: western canada Posts: 1,440	Hey Jen... A closed meeting.. and restricted sharing.. Yeah.. I've been hit with that as well... and it hurts... Now.. I can see the importance of keeping meetings on topic... and I do try to give closed meetings a pass unless I'm in crisis... but any time I've gone to a surrogate meeting to keep an abstinance... and I'm asked to qualify or share... I always state my addictions... and that I'm simply there as a friend of Bill... I've been passed on then quite a few times... and that's okay... cause I'm mostly there to hear the experience, strength and hope of the program. Just take what helps you .... and do whatever it takes to keep you clean... Blessings on your year Jen...

08-07-2004, 12:58 PM	#3 (permalink)
Chy Member Join Date: May 2003 Location: El Paso, Tx Posts: 5,886	Belated welcome Jen, you'll find a great deal of support here!

08-07-2004, 06:40 PM	#4 (permalink)
wishIsedNO Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: QUeeNz,NoOYaWk Posts: 210	Hey Jen i know how you feel....I havent been able to get into NA meetings never mind AA...But the problem is Im on methadone...And they see methadone just like any other drug...So to them im still using...And that hurts to me because yea some people who get on methadone abuse it and keep on using other drugs..But then theres also the few that take methadone like me and dont abuse it...Stay off of heroin..And begin to live normal lives thanx to the help of meth...But people only see the bad not the good and because of that i feel like im not welcomed..Although like my counnselor says no one knows nuthing unless you open your mouth, but my clinic since we have groups theres also and i have found nice friends there is a big part of my recovery life...And to not be able to share about it bugs me..When i used my life was filled with lies now im clean i dont wanna have to lie no more so i dont go to meeting unless its an emergency and its on a weekend..Cause thank god my clinic i go to is open all day during the week...And we have groups..And i see a counselor whenever i need too... Although your problem is different...But i know how you feel when you wanna talk about your problems and what really bugs you and feel like you aint welcomed to do so...And to me that shouldnt be..Especially when alcohol is just as much a drugs as drugs are...But in my opinion and what ive dealt with my dad..Alkies believe there seperate from drug addicts...Because what they use is legal...That drug addicts are criminals and disgusting...But hey my dads an alkie and hes just as ugly and miserable as i was when i used...All i can say is go with your heart..If it will make you feel better to come out and tell them your an addict then do so....Since your from a small town and you only got one NA meeting they should understand that you need to talk more then once a week...If they let something that small bug them then they're the one needs more meetings...Jackie

08-07-2004, 08:51 PM	#7 (permalink)
Omega Paused Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: OKC Posts: 50	The way I see it... I am an addict... and an alcoholic... and a bunch of other "ics" and "lics". And if there is recovery in the room... I will say I am an elephant... if that is what it takes. This is a simple program. When we complicate it and disect it... we suffer. Today... I feel no compulsion to prove my point or pursuede others to see my side. If the meeting is closed and the meeting is AA... then I should keep my statements related to alcohol. There are rules... and I am no exception to them... just like everyone else.

08-08-2004, 01:04 PM	#8 (permalink)
KelKel Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: The Mohave Desert Posts: 2,313	You certainly have a valid point Omega...

08-12-2004, 12:11 PM	#9 (permalink)
jen32 Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: Concordia, Kansas Posts: 14	Thank You all so much for your input. I agree there are rules and I am no exception. Thanks!

08-13-2004, 12:07 PM	#11 (permalink)
Cangel Charlie's Angel Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 39	I am so glad that AH is welcomed into his AA meetings. He has established a very good relationship with them. I don't really believe there are no NA meetings around here. There are no al-anon, naranon meetings either.

10-30-2008, 10:27 AM	#13 (permalink)
deathbyher Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: kingston ny Posts: 2 Blog Entries: 2	Hey i love N.A meeting but my boyfriend is an alcaholic as well as a drug atticted. so when i go with him to a.a i always say im an atticted.people look at me like im an alian but its cool.a drug is a drug an if people cant exept us then thats them not us. drugs are not social excepted but alchol is. thats how i look it at so i dont get anger.just see where there coming from.<3

10-30-2008, 10:40 AM	#14 (permalink)
bvaljalo YES WE DID!!! Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: East Bay, California Posts: 1,442	I'm primarily a drug addict, but I've certainly abused alcohol in my day as well. Not a textbook alcoholic by any stretch, but nevertheless, I identify myself as an addict/alcoholic when I go to AA, which is the fellowship I attend far more regularly. I simply use the euphemism 'getting loaded' to refer to my use of anything (if I even need to), and I've never gotten so much as a sideways look at any meeting I've ever been to, and I've been to a lot of them, in a lot of different places. Look, it's this simple: If you're told there's a rule to confine your shares to discussion of alcohol, then just don't mention drugs by name, and nobody is going to say 'boo' to you about 'breaking the rules'. And as for the methadone thing ... I would go to meetings anyway, even on methadone. You're there to learn how to live a clean/sober life, not necessarily to win everyone's 'approval'. I've never heard of a group that would kick someone out (or not allow them in) as long as they're not disruptive or disrespectful. If you need a meeting, and there is only a closed meeting available, then just GO, and don't talk about drugs specifically, and you should be fine by everyone there ... at least, that's been my experience. I'll tell you what, though, when you go to AA in more urban areas ... they are WAY more accepting of ANYone showing up who's looking for recovery from whatever their problem is, at least in my experience. I've been to very few AA meetings where it was explicitly stated that people were not to talk about anything but alcohol problems, and I've certainly never heard anyone get 'cut off' or anythign like that just cause they mentioned 'other substances' in a share. I kinda trip out when I hear stories like this, cause in the Bay Area, in California, I've always felt like ANYone who wanted recovery was welcome at AA meetings. __________________ well across the fields and woods i'd run like a bullet from a rabbit gun back home to my bed and when mama come in from gettysburg her an' that new beau o' hers 'boy, you look like hell' was all she said ...

10-30-2008, 10:58 AM	#15 (permalink)
justanothrdrunk Retired Pro Drunk Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Saint Paul, MN Posts: 485	Alcohol was my main thing, but I'm an addict too. The sentiment about AA being strictly about alcohol is largely regional I've found. In my area, no one in AA has voiced a concern about sharing of drug abuse or identifying as an addict in AA meetings where I've attended. There have been discussions here in the alcohol forums about this too. Some folks are more strict about the singleness of purpose of AA. And I can see their point. The one thing that qualifies you for AA is your desire to stop drinking. If you have that desire, you're in. Some others at meetings may need to be reminded of that. As far as sharing, to me, that's up to the group concious and not an individual. If I were approached by only a handful of folks, I would encourage to bring their concerns up at the next group concious or business meeting. It is, in my opinion, valid for an AA group concious to decide that sharing be limited to alcohol abuse. And if that's the way a meeting goes, I would be respectful of that. I also know folks who are more on the addict side who still share their drug experience, but choose their words a little more carefully. Instead of referring to drugs specifically they say, "when I 'pick-up'" or something more generic.

10-30-2008, 11:18 AM	#16 (permalink)
kj3880 Member Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: md Posts: 1,398	You know, I would just say I'm an alcoholic" if I'm at AA. I never abused the drug alcohol, but the AA definition is that anyone who has a desire to quit drinking is a member. And you know that in NA, we only consider ourselves as clean if we are not using and that includes alcohol for us. So I have the desire to stay clean from alcohol, which makes me legitimate for AA membership, at least in my mind. As for the methadone issue, I don't think I would share in NA about that. I didn't share about suboxone use, didn't need the negativity. I look at it this way: If you are taking it exactly as prescribed, it isn't drug abuse. Many, many people don't agree with me on the above issues, but I don't care. I have to do what I need to do to stay clean. The only clean time I have to count is my own. And so far, at 7 months, I have a much better life and I'm sane and productive. I'm happy, joyous and free, most of the time. KJ

10-30-2008, 11:19 AM	#17 (permalink)
windysan Large Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: La Posts: 3,547	When I went to AA meetings the alcoholics were a small minority. LOL __________________ ZigZaggin through Weirdland

10-30-2008, 12:56 PM	#18 (permalink)
ccgirl2 Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: cape cod Posts: 2,313	You know, I go to AA too, and one day I just broke down and fessed up that I was an addict. An old timer said it didn't matter what the substance was we were addicted to, just that were were all trying to get better. I'm sorry your group isn't more accepting. Maybe you could call AA in your general area and see if there's any other meetings for NA or open AA meetings within a reasonable distance.

10-31-2008, 12:15 AM	#20 (permalink)
Thanks2HP Member Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Somewhere in California Posts: 108	I got started in AA 14 years ago. Two years ago I started dating a woman who has the same amount of recovery in NA. I started attending NA meetings and she attended several AA meetings. She identifies as an addict when she goes to a meeting with me. I identified myself as an alcoholic when I went to her home group because I knew it would be ok to do so. Last month I started identifying myself as an addict at that and other NA meetings. I believe that an alcoholic and an addict are pretty much the same. AA focuses on the substance of alcohol while NA does not focus on any one substance. Alcohol is a drug - period. At the meetings I've attended, people in both AA and NA were tolerant of people not identifying as what the majority of the room identified as. I've heard people identify as "an alcoholic and an addict" too. I don't really care what people identify themselves as. I'm glad to see them at a meeting trying to stay clean, just like I am. A lot of the shares in AA mention drugs because that was part of their story. I haven't heard one complaint about it yet but I'm sure there might be an oldtimer or two that wouldn't get a warm & fuzzy if they heard drugs mentioned in an AA meeting. I'd like to think that the people in both programs would focus on the solution and recovery rather than what a person identifies as. "Hi, my name is Orkgon, I am an alien and I want to stay clean"... would be good enough for me! Please remember that the folks who have issues are fallible humans just like the rest of us. They may be forgetting the 'open-mindedness' aspect of recovery. I hope you learn to feel comfortable and get recovery no matter what meeting you go to.